Chapter 2 Guardian Angel

Elena's face grew paler and paler, blood continued to flow between her thighs. She was now unconscious.

Marco, Antonio's personal driver, who had just delivered Beatrice's luggage from the evil woman's house, immediately felt shocked and his eyes widened when he saw Elena lying on the floor in a pathetic condition. Still dressed as a maid with a knee-length skirt, Marco could clearly see the blood flowing through Elena's inner legs and dripping onto the floor.

"Oh, my! Mistress Elena!" With a quick movement, Marco approached the unconscious Elena. He carried her to Antonio's black car that Marco had used to pick up Beatrice's belongings at the woman's house.

"Signora Elena, I'll take you to the hospital. Just hang on."

"Thank you, Marco," Elena replied in a weak voice with half consciousness.

All the way to the hospital, Elena continued to whimper in pain, making Marco even more panicked. When they arrived, Marco immediately carried Elena out of the car and rushed into the hospital building.

The administration officer immediately gave Marco a form to fill in to get a referral for medical treatment. However, because Marco forgot to bring cash and could not use his debit card to pay for Elena's medical expenses, the receptionist immediately said firmly, "Sorry, sir, we cannot provide services without prior payment. We have rules that we must follow, and if I break them, then I will be held responsible for your hospital fees."

Elena looked at the wedding ring on her finger with teary eyes. Her fingers trembled as she had to decide whether to use the ring as collateral for her hospitalization. With what was left of her strength against the pain that was increasingly piercing her womb, she finally removed the jeweled ring that was the only precious possession she had.

"Marco, use this," Elena said in a hoarse voice due to the unbearable pain.

Marco accepted the ring with a look of shock and sadness. He knew how much the ring meant to Elena, remembering how Antonio had so lovingly chosen it to symbolize their eternal promise. Now, fate had brought that love to guarantee the lives of a mother and her unborn child.

"But Signora, this ring..." Marco said hesitantly as he reached for the ring.

Elena blinked her eyes weakly, trying to keep the tears from falling before Marco.

"Please, this is all she has. I will pay for everything later. Please help me save her pregnancy," Marco pleaded hoarsely.

"I'm sorry, sir. We cannot accept payment in this way. The rules of this hospital are very strict," the receptionist said as she clasped her hands in front of her chest in apology.

Elena was increasingly unable to stand due to the worsening pain. She finally fell down and sat huddled in front of the reception desk clutching her stomach which felt like it was being pressed by something hard, while blood flowed more and more between her thighs. Her breathing was ragged from the panic that enveloped her.

Marco immediately sat next to Elena's body lying on the hospital floor. With hands shaking with panic Marco tried to contact Sofia and Antonio using a cell phone. But his calls were not answered making him even more anxious about the current situation.

"Signora, you should leave here immediately. You can find the nearest clinic to get treatment for your pregnancy. Please don't complicate my work," the receptionist told Elena.

"Signora, but her condition is very weak," Marco said in response to the receptionist's words.

The argument between Marco and the receptionist immediately drew the attention of a man in a fancy black suit who had just entered the hospital building. The man stopped his steps followed by several bodyguards and hospital officials who followed him. Of course, this man was not just any man.

He was Lorenzo Ricci, a handsome and charismatic 32-year-old, the most respected man in the city of Sicily. At the age of 32, Lorenzo Ricci has achieved a lot of success in the business world. He was known to be a socially conscious person who was often involved in charity work.

"What's going on here?" he asked, staring intently at the Administration.

Lorenzo was the largest contributor to the hospital's construction and had complete control over its operations and management. Lorenzo also had wealth, political influence, and strong relationships with government officials and important figures in the health sector. With Lorenzo's relationships and power, it was easy for him to close the hospital. Therefore, the higher-ups at the hospital tried to maintain good relations with Lorenzo to keep the hospital's operations running smoothly.

"Sir, the charity event is about to begin. We'd better go inside right away, considering you're an important guest of our hospital as a regular donor." The hospital chief tried to distract Lorenzo, who had come as a special guest at the hospital's charity event.

However, Lorenzo ignored the chief's words, his eyes now fixed on Elena, who was curled up and whimpering softly with a very pale and cold sweaty face. Suddenly, a flash of his dead sister's face flashed in his mind.

"Why are you letting this pregnant woman moan in pain here?" asked Lorenzo in a stern tone.

The receptionist looked down in fear of facing the head of the hospital, as well as Lorenzo Ricci. No one dared to answer him, including the head of the hospital, who also looked very nervous and frightened as he tried to cover up the hospital rules he had made from Lorenzo.

Until Marco finally spoke up, "Sir, we have no money and would like to use this ring as collateral for the payment. However, the receptionist refused."

Lorenzo's sharp gaze immediately fell on the receptionist, making her tremble in fear. "Gentlemen, it's a rule in this hospital that the administrative fees must be settled first, and then we will provide treatment. We also cannot accept any form of payment other than money. If I dare to violate, then I will be held responsible for the patient's hospital fees."

Lorenzo's eyes rounded perfectly in surprise. "How dare you make rules like this," he scolded all the hospital officials accompanying him at this time. "If this woman and the baby she's carrying are in danger, do you dare take responsibility for their lives?"

The hospital chief panicked and immediately contacted the nurse to refer Elena to the medical team immediately. "So-Sorry, Mr. Lorenzo, this is a mistake that will not be repeated."

"Sir, thank you. It turns out that there are still people with angelic hearts like you," Marco praised before he finally followed the nurse to take Elena to the emergency room.

Lorenzo gazed at the head of the hospital, who was currently bowing his head with his hands shaking with fear. "Make sure that no other patient has to experience a situation like this again," he warned in a threatening tone that made the sweat pour even more profusely down the head of the hospital's forehead.

Meanwhile, Elena was already lying on the hospital bed accompanied by doctors and nurses who were currently busy checking the monitors and medical instruments on the transvaginal ultrasound.

"We need to go into labor immediately for the safety of the mother and the baby," the doctor told Marco.

"Labor? I'm only seven months along," Elena replied with anxiety as she heard the doctor's words to her husband's personal driver.

"Signora, you currently have placenta previa and we have detected that your baby has a heart defect that could threaten your baby's safety. This is because you are working too hard and are too stressed."

The fear haunting Elena at this time resulted in the pressure on her abdomen becoming more intense. Elena whimpered in pain as tears welling up.

The doctor, who was currently standing in front of Marco, immediately continued his words, "Mr. Marco, please bring Mrs. Elena's husband here. Maybe the presence of her husband can reduce the anxiety that Mrs. Elena feels. I'm afraid Ms. Elena's panic has caused her blood pressure to rise. That could be fatal to the safety of her womb."